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King of Midland
(1997 Anime) (2016 Anime, Films) |english voice= Jeff Swarthout (1997 Anime) (2016 Anime, Films) |gender= Male |eyes= Brown |hair= Brown White (Conviction Arc) |status= Deceased |affiliation=Midland |previous affiliation= |occupation= King of Midland |previous occupation= |relatives= Queen of Midland (Second Wife) Charlotte (Daughter) Julius (Younger Brother) Adonis (Nephew) |image gallery= |species = Human}} The was the previous ruler of Midland. Despite a relatively prominent and recurring role in the Golden Age Arc, his actual name was never mentioned. Appearance He was a tall man with long brown hair and facial features. In the manga, his hair whitened and his body became emaciated a year after he had Griffith imprisoned. Personality Initially, the King was largely seen as a fair, wise, and generous man, allowing the Band of the Falcon into the ranks of the nobility, and rewarding them generously for their assistance against Tudor. The King thought highly of Griffith and seemed to recognize his talent and usefulness, something that other nobles, specifically Julius, refused to accept due to Griffith's lower-class background. He was also regarded by his second wife as a good king, albeit a poor husband and lover. Although generally a kind and forgiving man, the King held a secret that ultimately led him down a spiral of madness; a repressed lust for his daughter Charlotte. At some point during his rule, he began to see his status as a burden and greatly resented the stresses and pressures of his position as ruler of Midland. He sought for resolution through his daughter, whom he deeply loved and saw as the only good thing in his life. However, once this love soon turned to lust, Charlotte began despising her father, and he was reduced to nothing but a decrepit and insane shell of what he once was. After hearing that Griffith slept with Charlotte, the respect he once had for the knight turned into contempt and he saw to it himself that he would be the one to personally punish Griffith by lashing him in his dungeon. After Griffith deduced the king's true feelings towards his daughter, the King from then on became a frenzied and unforgiving man, ordering the brutal daily torture of Griffith and even threatening his guards, warning them that if they were to ever repeat to anyone what Griffith said, their families would be executed. Story Golden Age Arc The King is first seen when he observes the Band of the Falcon decimating the Black Ram cavalry of Tudor. Taking a shining to Griffith, the King makes the Falcons a part of his army and later names Griffith viscount, while gradually making his group take the place of Julius and his White Dragon Knights. Once the Hundred-Year War ended, the King announces Griffith's promotion to General within a couple months. Yet, when the King learns that Griffith had sexual relations with his daughter Charlotte, he orders the capture and execution of the Falcons, and personally lashes their leader in the Tower of Rebirth. Griffith's remarks about the King's incestuous lust for his child and belief that he won the war himself pushes the King to the brink of utter rage. After exhausting himself, the King gives the torturer instructions to keep Griffith alive to be endlessly tortured. When the King visits his resting daughter, he gives into weakness and attempts to sexually assault her, but Charlotte fought back and kicked him out of her room, causing Charlotte to hate and despise her father deeply, even going as far as to no longer call him her father. A year later, the King learns of Griffith's escape and sends a group of Bakiraka assassins after them. However, the assassins fail, and the King, after telling Charlotte that he will not continue his hunt for Griffith when she uses his lust for her as blackmail to save Griffith, secretly entrusts the task to Wyald and his brutish mercenaries. Conviction Arc Two years after Griffith escaped from the Tower of Rebirth, the king has succumbed to illness. On his deathbed, the king has a vision of the Falcon of Light in a dream, like many in his kingdom. In the king's delirious vision, he is sitting on his throne, his soldiers keeping him from his daughter, as the Falcon of Light appears behind her, then reveals itself to be Griffith. The sight makes the king wonder, in his dying moment, if all that he wanted was someone to free him from the burden of his rule after all. Gallery Panels= 0110006.jpg|Having lost his sanity, a sickly King of Midland sits askew on his throne. |-| Golden Age Film Trilogy= 069916.JPG|The King of Midland converses with Count Julius. 044248.JPG|The King wears chainmail armor. 092395.JPG|The King of Midland presides over the Midland victory celebration. |-| Anime (2016)= Midland King death.png|The King of Midland dies. Notes * In the Berserk 1997 anime, the King's feelings for his daughter are never alluded to, nor are they mentioned by Griffith. This probably meant that the King did not possess these traits in the anime series and simply imprisoned Griffith for sleeping with Charlotte and violating his trust. * In the Berserk film trilogy, the King's feelings for his daughter are never fully confirmed and are simply alluded to by Griffith. However, the King's reaction to Griffith's proposal is still just as frantic and enraged. The King also did not become sick like he did in the manga. * In the 2016 Berserk anime, the King's vision was cut from the story. es:Rey de Midland King of Midland King of Midland Category:Midland Category:Golden Age Arc Characters Category:Conviction Arc Characters Category:Deceased Characters